De Minimis - Frequently asked questions

Q1 My applicant has heard that he is able to get €200,000 de minimis over a 3 year period, where does he access these funds?

It is a common misconception that de minimis is a pot of money that can be accessed by undertakings. De minimis provides State aid cover for small amounts of aid (up to €200,000) granted through public resources but is not in itself a pot of money.

Q2 Is de minimis cover only allowed for small and medium sized enterprises?

De minimis can be awarded to any undertaking regardless of its size because the Commission considers that such small amounts of aid will have a negligible impact on trade and competition.

Q3 Is de minimis available to undertakings in all sectors?

The de minimis regulation does not apply to the following sectors:

• aid to the fishery and aquaculture sectors, as covered by Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000;
• aid linked to the primary production of agricultural products as listed in Annex 1 to the Treaty, in the following cases:
• when the amount of aid is fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the undertakings concerned;
• when the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to primary producers;
• aid for export related activities;
• aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods;
• aid to the coal sector, as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1407/2002;
• aid for the acquisition of road freight transport vehicles granted to undertakings performing road freight transport for hire or reward;
• aid to undertakings in difficulty;
• aid granted to undertakings for activities in the processing and marketing of annex 1 products is allowed under certain circumstances total is limited to €100,000 for undertakings involved in the road transport sector.

Q4 How do I convert the de minimis total of €200,000 into pounds

The de minimis ceiling can be converted into pounds using the appropriate exchange rate published monthly by the European Commission (available on the following website): http://ec.europa.eu/budget/inforeuro/index.cfm?fuseaction=currency_historique&currency=GBP&Language=en.
The applicable exchange rate is the one recorded on the day de minimis was awarded (i.e. the date the award letter was sent) and not the date paid.

Q5 If de minimis aid is awarded in November 2008, but not actually paid out until May 2009, in which fiscal year would it be counted?

De minimis is counted from the date it is awarded i.e. the date of the award letter.  If a de minimis award letter was issued in November 2008 but no money was paid until May 2009, the de minimis would still be counted as begin awarded in the 2007/08 fiscal year. This provides more flexibility under the new de minimis regulation as only the current and previous two fiscal years need to be counted when calculating how much de minimis has previously been paid.

Q6 What can de minimis be used for?

De minimis can be used for any purpose, including operating aid. However, some sectors are excluded - question 3 refers.

Q7 What 3 fiscal year period do I use when calculating how much de minimis the applicant has received?

You will need to use the current and previous two fiscal years.  For example, if de minimis is awarded in January 2009 you would calculate using the 2008/2009, 2007/2008 and 2006/2005 fiscal years. For aid granted after 1 April 2009 you would calculate using the 2009/2010, 2008/2009 and 2007/2008 fiscal years.

Q8 An applicant has applied for funds from a scheme covered by de minimis, they haven't reached the de minimis total but my award will take them over the limit can I provide part of the funds they have asked for?

No, the de minimis regulation does not allow a part award to be granted. Therefore if an applicant asks for an amount that will take them over the de minimis threshold of €200,000 they will not be able to receive anything.

Q9 Can I cumulate de minimis with other forms of State aid?

The current de minimis regulation does not allow cumulation of de  minimis with other types of State aid (e.g. aid covered under one of the block exemptions or by a notified scheme).

Q10 Funds have been provided to an applicant to run a scheme covered by de minimis on our behalf - what do they need to do to ensure the terms of the de mininmis regulation has been met?

Under the de minimis regulation those granting aid are required to ensure, prior to making an award, that the beneficiary has not breached their de minimis ceiling.  The aid administrator must inform any organisation receiving support that they are in receipt of de minimis aid with express reference made to the De minimis Regulation 1998/2006 as published in the Official Journal of the European Journal dated 28 December 2006.

It is recommended that there is check made on the scheme administrators to ensure they have the correct monitoring procedures in place.

Q11 Does de minimis only cover cash awards?

De minimis can be used to provide cover for free or subsidised services provided to undertakings such as business advice, training etc. However, for de minimis purpose services must be given a cash value equal to the amount the service would cost the undertaking on the open market. If the beneficiary is contributing towards the cost of the service de minimis should be used to cover the subsidised amount.